Black Ballad (BB) is a subscription media lifestyle platform that uses media, community and data to empower black women in Britain and beyond. The company asserts that since its inception in 2014, it has become a dominant force for Black women in Britain, with thousands of members paying upwards of £4.99 per month or £49 per year to access BB's combination of content, events and lifestyle perks. BB claims that it has been the recipient of over £125,000 in grants from organisations that include NESTA, Deutsche Bank and Kings College London. BB argues that it launched two successful surveys about Black Motherhood and Black Women in Britain producing over 400,000 data points from nearly 6,000 respondents. The company has also signed a content partnership with BBC to launch Steve McQueen's 'Small Axe' mini-series. It will use 35% of the investment on technology evolution, 23% towards content creation, 23% towards audience development and marketing, 13% for business development, and 6% for legal, accounting and miscellaneous expenses.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£337,885
Propetly is an online platform that acts as a connecting hub between investment providers and global investors in the field of real estate. It enables potential property investors to find, evaluate and calculate their investment project within minutes. With the help of AI-enabled architecture, Propetly can verify transactions on its portal, suggest finance options and ensure complete diligence of the transaction as per industry benchmarks. Given the relative lack of professional and up-to-date property investors in the UK, Propetly aims to become the one-stop-shop for all real estate deals. Its offering has led to Propetly being counted amongst leading PropTech brands in the UK. With the funds received, Propetly will invest in paid advertising and PR, upgrade its AI systems to enable more options are available to customers across wide demographics and human resources.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£235,079
Square Mile Farms (SMF) is a company that installs innovative and productive vertical farms in a workplace to engage employees and help businesses create a culture of healthy, low-impact living. Its 'Office Farming' model creates green spaces for engagement and collaboration. In 2019, it was invited to build a vertical farm in Paddington Central by British Land, one of UK’s largest landowners. The setup now acts as a hub for the company's office farm installations and a base from which it can conduct Research and Development (R&D). SMF's customers include Grosvenor Group Limited and Vodafone. Moreover, the company has been covered by media platforms such as BBC One and BBC Radio. It will use 45% of the investment for sales and business development, 15% for design and technology up-gradation, 15% for raising its profile and increasing brand awareness, and 25% for operations.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£504,118
Advanced Blast & Ballistic Systems (ABBS) is a company that has developed globally patented systems to counteract the forces an armoured vehicle sustains when a mine or Improvised Explosive Device (IED) explodes under it. As per reports, mines and IEDs accounted for over 80% of UK and US army casualties in Iraq & Afghanistan. ABBS believes that its products can keep occupants inside a vehicle completely safe from the aforementioned explosive devices. The armoured vehicle protection market has a value of about $20 billion wherein ABBS aims to be a major contender. The company has received £2 million-plus revenues till date from Research and Development (R&D) grants in the UK, as well as, sold its products to the US Army and Israel with profits worth £145,000 in 2018 and £560,000 in 2019 respectively. It will use the investment to bring its products to more markets globally.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£445,814
The Landsite is the UK's first online property portal that connects various entities within the property industry such as developers, legal services, insurance advisors and architects, to one another, simplifying the process of finding and buying a property. By registering with The Landsite, a business/professional can list their business as operating in a specific region of the country and appear against all property searches that take place in that same region. The user then needs to put in their postcode or address and can then access properties within that region, as well as, seek available professional guidance to zero in upon a potential purchase. The platform also has an insights page that aims to become a recruitment, training and educational hub for the property industry. The company will use the investment to grow its business across different verticals.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
Withheld
Antaco is a company that deals in waste management by converting it into neutral solid biofuel using their patented technology. The global water sector is estimated to present a £15 billion opportunity. To date, the company has raised £5.8 million, including an £857,000 grant from the UK government and has also signed a contract with its first customer (Swiss Public Utility). With the proceeds, the company will build up their in-house capacity, increase enhancement of existing plant and hire subcontractors to install and commission plant.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£570,840
Jeeni is an online entertainment service that aims to harness the growing reach of streamed music. It has close to 350 million subscribers and a growth rate of 39% Year-on-Year (YoY) providing billion-dollar revenues for digital disruptors. The Jeeni prototype was launched in April 2019. The company asserts that it offers artists an ethical revenue share. Five revenue streams are operating in parallel on the Jeeeni platform, namely, subscription-based memberships, online masterclasses, bespoke hardware sales, pay-to-view streamed events, and branded merchandise sales. The company's long term goal is to surpass its target paid subscriber numbers, achieve high subscriber growth and exit by acquisition. The investment raised will be used to further scale the company's capacity globally and build its mass artist showcases.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£118,854
One Year No Beer (OYNB) is a community support platform that helps people change their relationship with alcohol. It does this by allowing its users to choose a plan from the company's subscription-based models that consist of a 28-day, 90-day, and 365-day challenge to stay away from alcohol. The platform has empowered 70,000+ people in 90 countries through its challenges. Excess alcohol consumption leads to 3 million deaths per year and costs up to £59 billion to the UK economy alone. OYNB aims to resolve this crisis through its platform. For its efforts, the platform has been mentioned in publications such as the BBC, ITV, Metro, and Daily Telegraph. It also has an online presence of 130,000+ Facebook and 50,000+ Instagram followers. The company will use 42% of the investment to hire personnel, 33% for technology and product builds, and 25% as overhead costs.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£1,757,111
Gively is an online marketplace where users can give and get secondhand items for free. The secondhand clothing market will double in value to £50 billion annually by 2023, and the company finds itself as a suitable contender in this domain. They aim to lower greenhouse gas emissions and minimise landfill sites through its portal. The company has reached over 5,000 users, 70% of which came from unpaid channels. Gively won an SME (Small and medium enterprises) grant worth £10,000 of television advertising and has received rave reviews from its users through the App Store, social media, and in person. They will use 50% of the investment for marketing purposes, 25% for technology up-gradation, and 25% for hiring human resources.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£105,207
pluumo makes sustainable thermal packaging material from waste feathers. The company asserts that fresh food deliveries need thermal packaging to keep ingredients frozen and prevent spoilage. pluumo claims that plastics such as Expanded Polystyrene (EPS) are used in this process, leading to 141,000 tons of plastic waste generated in the EU in 2019. pluumo asserts that its patent-pending material matches the performance of EPS, keeping items chilled for up to 40 hours. The company has secured £450,000 in grants/awards, including £140,000 via InnovateUK. It aims to be a contender in the $137 billion online food delivery industry. pluumo argues that 74% of consumers would pay more for green packaging, with e-commerce sustainable packaging predicted to be worth $65 billion by 2023. The company will use the investment to scale production and expand into the wider UK market.
days to go:
Expired
investment:
£511,325
